Sport

Wood stars as Hants dominate Kent

Hampshire all-rounder Chris Wood followed his opening day half-century with a five for 39 haul on day two of their LV= County Championship clash with Kent in Canterbury.

The Kent middle order struggled to cope as the left-armer bowled with both accuracy and hostility on a seemingly docile pitch as the visitors continued to command events.

Playing his first Championship match of the season, Wood joined forces with James Tomlinson and Matt Coles to form a three-pronged pace threat that the hosts never mastered as they were shot out for 191 in reply to Hampshire's battling first innings total of 380.

Despite claiming a lead of 189, Hampshire's skipper Jimmy Adams decided against enforcing the follow-on and in the 24 overs remaining through to stumps, hit an unbeaten 26 to see his side go in at stumps on 57 without loss - a lead of 246 runs at the midway point.

Kent had started their initial response at midday but they were already in trouble by lunch after losing two early wickets, Daniel Bell-Drummond the first after he shuffled half-forward and outside the line to go lbw to the lively Tomlinson.

Then, on the cusp of the interval, Ben Harmison shouldered arms against the same bowler to lose his off stump and go for 21.

Home skipper Rob Key perished soon after the resumption to a stunning low caught and bowled effort by Woods, who reacted sharply in his follow through to pluck a one-handed catch down by his boot laces after the former England bat drove on the up.

Fabian Cowdrey, the third generation of the famous cricketing clan to play at The Week, reached nine before his former team-mate Coles re-arranged his stumps and followed it with a verbal send-off for god measure.

From 64 for four, Kent partially regrouped with a fifth wicket stand worth 85 between Darren Stevens and Sam Northeast.

Stevens was quick to attack Hampshire spinner Danny Briggs and effectively hit him out of the attack with a huge six that sailed over the president's marquee and out of the ground. Briggs's four wicketless overs cost 32 as Stevens cruised to a 51 ball 50 that also included eight fours.

Northeast looked set to join him but, just four runs short of the landmark, the Kent right-hander sparred outside off against Sean Ervine to be caught in the cordon.

The dismissal sparked a secondary collapse in which Kent lost their last six wickets for only 42 runs. Sam Billings was castled by Wood, and Ervine had Calum Haggett snaffled at slip by Michael Carberry.

Top-scorer Stevens (64) tossed away his wicket by pulling a short one from Wood to Carberry, this time positioned at deep mid-wicket, then Riley lobbed a bat-pad catch to short leg to give Wood a fifth wicket before Tomlinson polished the job off by having Mitch Claydon caught at point.

At the day's start Kent needed a further 50 minutes to take Hampshire's last three wickets and restrict the visitors to 380 all out.

Zimbabwean Ervine, a thorn in Kent's side throughout the first afternoon of the game, went without adding to his overnight score of 75 when he edged Australian Test bowler Doug Bollinger through the keeper. The bowler finished with figures of three for 85. Coles quickly followed suit to give keeper Billings his sixth catch of the innings and leave bowler Claydon with figures three for 72.

A stubborn last-wicket stand between Tomlinson and Briggs added 23 more runs before off-spinner Riley's introduction sparked Briggs' demise when he chipped a simple catch to Key at short mid-wicket that left Kent facing an uncomfortable hour's batting through to lunch.